Ahead of tomorrow's clash against Atalanta, Maurizio Sarri addressed invited media at Allianz Stadium, where he previewed the game and provided an update on his team:
THE OPPONENT
"This is an important phase of the season. Atalanta are the real deal and are doing really well and their stats reflect that, especially away from home. They're a very difficult opponent and have been for some time. Right now we have to think about the target of the league, then Lyon. Whatever comes next we can't think about.
The Nerazzurri are an aggressive team that know how to counter well. From a physical point of view they have important accelerations and it will be a difficult game from all points of view. Right now almost all teams struggle to have continuity for 90 minutes and what I would like to see is organisation, which in certain moments is decisive.
In the away match Atalanta held a very intense rhythm for 55 minutes but then they likely couldn't hold it for the final stages. I think we'll see a different type of match this time around."
THE BIANCONERI
"Paulo Dybala is unquestionably an absolute talent, but given the blackout we had in Milan I still think it would have gone the same way [with him available]. Douglas Costa is an important player for us, and after going through a period without Higuain, having someone like him ready to come off the bench and change the games was crucial.
Alex Sandro was out for 10 days, whilst Giorgio Chiellini has taken a different, longer path, where in the last 11 months has trained very little with the group."
THE CURRENT MOMENT
"If the match against Milan had happened earlier on, the priority would be to go in search of the causes. Given that we are in the final stages, the priority becomes ensuring that it doesn't have a negative impact. We have to look forward immediately.
We'll see today after training whether or not there will be a few changes for the match."